


Bedridden

by ellay_gee



Series: Whumptober 2018 [16]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Gen, post-whump, the only whumping in this is the whumping your heart is going to get, whumptober lite
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-17
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-08-03 10:05:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16324148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellay_gee/pseuds/ellay_gee
Summary: Regis and Noctis share some father-son time





	Bedridden

**Author's Note:**

> ok, so this is not technically whump, but it is post whump, and that still counts, right? Right?!

Regis snuck in just before sunrise. He’d been away from his son for too long; but alas duty had called and he’d needed to go back to Insomnia shortly after Noctis woke from his coma. He’d left his son in the best of care; Queen Sylva and her sweet daughter Lunafreya were quite taken with the little prince, and tended to his every need.

It had been nearly a month since he’d last laid eyes on Noctis, and he took a moment to watch the boy's beautiful sleeping face. The shaft of sun crept from the window, lightly gracing his features and lighting up the blue undertones of the boy’s raven hair, giving him an ethereal air.

But he had to break the scene and wake his son. He had but a short time to spend with him, and he didn’t want to waste a moment of it.

He sat on the edge of the bed and began running his fingers through Noctis’s soft hair. The boy had been more or less bedridden for the last two months. The Marilith had done quite a lot of damage; so much so that he deeply feared he’d lose his son. But bringing him to Sylva had helped.

With her magic and the favor of the Six, his boy was brought back from the brink of death. Regis was never more grateful for anything in his life than when those midnight blue eyes opened and Noctis’s disused voice squeaked out for his father.

He smiled softly as Noctis groaned and half-heartedly swatted at the hand intruding on his sleep. “Come on, now Noct, it’s time to wake up.”

The boy cracked his eyes open, a look of sleepy annoyance quickly replaced by joy crossing his face. He winced as he shot up and threw his arms around his father. “Dad! I thought you weren’t coming till next week.” He leaned back and offered his father a sleepy grin.

“I couldn’t stand the thought of another day without seeing your face.” Regis said as he gathered Noctis in his arms and pulled him into his lap. The little prince eagerly cuddled into his father’s warm embrace.

“I missed you.” He said, his voice small and slow as he yawned into his fist. “But you coulda let me sleep a little longer.”

Regis chuckled and placed a kiss on top of the boy’s head.

“If I let you sleep any longer, we wouldn’t get to go on the adventure I have planned.” Regis leaned back and grinned at the boy.

“Adventure?” Noctis asked, more than a little dubious.

“Yes, you’re going t love it. Now let’s get you ready, shall we?”

 

* * *

 

Queen Sylva’s lands were extensive and lush. The grounds on which the castle sat had a variety of attractions; gardens where rare flowers and healing plants grew, a small sanctuary for animals who were having trouble making in the wild, rolling hills perfect for picnics…

But where he took his son was truly special. Tucked away just beyond a shady wood was a rustic fish pond. He wheeled Noctis out on the short pier, parking his chair a few feet from the edge.

“Now, we place the lure on just like this—“ Regis demonstrated to his son, who paid rapt attention. “Careful of the hook…” he admonished himself as he nearly got his own finger. Noctis laughed at his father’s antics, chest filled with warmth.

“And then,” now he placed the handle of the small fishing pole into the prince’s hands, covering them with his own as he leaned over him slightly. “We just swing it back and whip it forward, hitting the release button as we do…”

Noctis grinned up at his dad as they cast the line. It only went out a few yards beyond the dock, but it was good enough. Regis patted his shoulder and summoned his own pole from his armiger, quickly adding his lure to the water.

“Now what?” Noctis asked, bouncing the pole a little, delighting in the ripples the lure made as it skittered just below the surface.

“Now we wait.” Regis replied, settling down on the pier next to his son.

“Oh, ok.” Noctis stared out across the water for a few moments, watching his father reel in his line a bit, repositioning his lure within the water. “I like this. It’s…quiet.”

Regis nodded along. “Yes, that’s what I like about it, too. A few hours of no one demanding your attention or asking you questions is a luxury that I delight in. When I was a bit younger, I took every opportunity to fish. I even got rounded up by the Crownsguard once when I was about 12 because I snuck off Citadel grounds alone to check out a new spot I’d heard of. I thought my father was going to be furious with me, but he just laughed.”

Noctis giggled at his father’s expressive face, reaching out one of his small hands to trace his finger along the older man’s smile. “Do you miss your dad?” He asked with the innocence of a child, thinking only seconds after the words left his mouth that they may not have been appropriate.

But instead of getting sad, his father just nodded. “I miss him every day.”

The little prince opened his mouth to say something; perhaps “I love you” or “I miss you every day, too”, but a sudden tugging in his hand startled the thoughts out of his head.

“I think I got one!” He whisper-shouted as he gripped his pole and sat up straighter in the wheelchair. Regis quickly got to his feet and got behind him, ready to lend assistance if it was needed.

“That’s it! Reel it in slowly…don’t tug it too hard, yes—exactly like that!” When the line got close enough to the dock, Regis wound it around his hand and pulled the fish out of the water, grinning at Noctis as it flopped about.

“Good job, buddy! You did great!” He dropped the little fish into the bucket he’d set up off to the side, and helped Noctis to cast his line once more.

“I’m so proud of you, my son.”

 

* * *

 

Years later, Noctis would recall this moment with a bittersweet heart. He’d smile as he thought of his father—the good man who only wanted peace, but was handed nothing but war. The man who’d loved Noctis and let him live a life he himself did not have.

The man who had sacrificed himself to help Noctis save everyone.


End file.
